Bromeliads for the novice and addict. April 2013

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1300855/#top We came from here.

Welcome to the Australian bromeliad thread. Don't be shy, join in, ask as many questions as you like, and post photos of your favourite bromeliads.

Sue
photo is Aechmea 'Dark Goddess'

I have had a busy day helping my Mum go through her craft studio/shed. It was full almost to the roof! Anyway, I am missing my bromeliads, but have photos to keep me happy.
Just a few photos to share with you.
Photo one is Guzmania sanguinea. By the way, this one only produces one pup from the centre, so is almost impossible to remove without killing the plant.
Photo two is Aechmea 'Black Beauty' but it needs a bit more direct sun.
Photo three is Neo. 'Razzberry Ripple' also from Big W, labeled by the olive branch as 'Raspberry ripple'
Photo four is Aechmea 'Flamingo' a fendlerii hybrid
Photo five is Aechmea comata var makoyana, which is orange as a pup.
Sue

hi everyone. Not much new here. Thought id better say hi, seen as though i havent posted much lately. Ive just been quickly reading the posts and doing alot of other jobs i have. Planting winter veggies in my raised garden beds. Looking after all my chooks, they just never stop wanting to eat. Cleaning/organising fish tanks, have fish getting to big and picking on other fish. Now have wire dividing the 4 foot tank until i can sell one of the problem fish. Dramas. hehe!
Had a quiet easter, daughter was at her dads. I havent done much in my brom garden, been raining on and off. Its April already and very busy here in Yamba with the holidays close

Hi all,
I stuffed up again. The plant supplier is The Olive Branch. Big W the agent. I don't know why I wrote Grove, but then Things are not normal here just at the moment. All I did here today was to buy some potting mix on special and take a couple of pix
Have a good one
Ian
Pic 1 Concentrica alba X Maurice Featherstone
Pic 2 NOID
Pic 3 Noid
Pic 4 Predator on right, Garnish on left
Pic 5 Grace on right, princess above with medusa on left

Hi everyone, so there goes Easter for another year.

We didn’t have a lot of rain here, just a few scattered showers every day, lasting just long enough to have us down tools and head for cover. We did manage to get quite a bit done though. Today we cleaned up a couple of gardens that had become quite overgrown since we had all the rain. Now we will have to make a couple of trips to the dump with the green waste.

Nev, sorry to hear your back is giving you trouble again … and then the rain. I hope it all came good for you later in the day.

I don’t have a pic of a mature neo Black Lace but I will take another one in a few months so you can see its’ progress. I will do the same with neo Dark Veil.

As you say Nev, the registered neo Pink Star is quite different to both of our plants. I think mine will mature to look like yours … I’ll be happy with that, perhaps ours are neo Pink Star Novar. As to neo Mulford Foster, isn’t it odd that the parent plant isn’t registered yet a number of hybrid seedlings are?

Thanks for the pics of your neos Apricot Nectar, Pink Star and Mulford Foster hybrid ... I hope mine turn out to be as lovely. I love your neos Grey Nurse and Golden Fantasy.

Sue, thanks for the new thread for April, gosh last month went quickly. I just love that aechmea Dark Goddess, one day when you have heaps of pups, I would love one, please, please, please.

You are so lucky Sue, to have a Big W that stocks nice broms (and Ian is too) … just not fair. I love your aechmeas Flamingo and Comata var Makoyana. I saw one of the same Ae Comata on eBay recently and was very tempted to bid but resisted, now I wish I had, what a lovely plant.

Bree, I will hold off sending your parcel until next Monday, hope you don’t mind.

Ian, I need to repot so many huge plants at the moment, I reckon I’ll need at least 10 bags of potting mix … hope I can find some on special.

My pics – 1 is neo Bruiser, 2 is a cute little pup on neo Fiesta, 3 is Hohenbergia Correia Araujoi inflorescence.

Bye for now, Shirley

Hi Everybody – Well that sees the end of Easter, not long to Christmas now. I wonder when the shops will start advertising Christmas presents.

Sue – Thanks heaps for starting the new thread. It's good to have someone like you that old computer illiterates like me can rely on. Sorry to hear your post went up in smoke and vanished. It happened to me a couple of times when I first joined this group but ever since then I type my posts first on MS Word, and then when I have them how I want them I just cut and paste....no more problems since.

I like the colouring of your Ae. 'Dark Goddess', I've never seen it before but I'd bet pounds to peanuts that it has Ae. Chantinii in it somewhere in its Family Tree, and so that rules it out for me as everything with Chantinii I've tried (except Ae. 'Echidna') can't tolerate our cool winters down here. However I can still “drool” at your picture.

My Guzmania 'Sanguinea' is just starting to colour up as I said in a recent post, but it seems to have stopped half way. I moved it to a spot in the garden last year to make a bit more bench space and it seems it doesn't like it there. The upside is though I've just noticed it has two pups this time so that has to be a bonus. As you say it usually only has one pup and it destroys the “Mother Plant” to remove it, however mine produces two pups about every three or four years and the spare doesn't last long as there's always someone looking for it. Interestingly I bought mine at a local market and would you believe it was labelled as Neoregelia 'Flame'? The lady seller assured me it was an extremely rare Neo. and I wouldn't find a Neo. like it anywhere.... well she got that right as it wasn't even a Neo. I didn't know what it was at that time as I was new to brom's so I grabbed it as I thought the $5 price tag was very reasonable even if it was growing in almost straight sand!

I like your nice dark 'Orlandiana' it's a beaut and the other two Aechmeas in your last two pic's look very interesting as well, any chance of another picture when they flower as I haven't seen either of them before? Good to see you were able to “cash in” on a plant of Neo. 'Razzberry Ripple' also. It seems you and Ian are the lucky ones to have a Big W that sells Olive's plants. Did you get yours at Coffs Harbour? I had a friend who came back from a Tillandsia conference in Melbourne a few months back and he said that Olive was there and told him that they would be supplying most Big W stores from Brisbane down to Coffs Harbour and she told him the first shipment was to be “patterned foliage” Vrieseas a couple of weeks after the conference. I mentioned it here at the time but I don't know if anyone got any but it's good to know they will be available through Big W.

Breeindy – Good to see you back again; seems like you've been very busy with other things. Gee I hope you don't get another flood now that you've planted your raised veg. garden beds, where will you put your brom's? It must be great to have enough space to have a few chooks; when I was a kid everyone had chooks down the back yard, but then we all had big blocks where we lived in rented quarryman's houses. Nothing beats fresh veggies and eggs and of course when Christmas came around in those days it was our own roast chook as well. That was in the days when chooks and veggies had flavour, not like the “mass produced rubbish” we buy today..... I know, here goes that “cranky old man” grizzling again. You also say you have fish as well, gee where do you get the time to look after them all?

Ian – You say you stuffed up again; let me tell you I'm always doing that, but when I served my apprenticeship many many moons ago, I worked with an old Scottish carpenter and he always said, ”It is nae a “stuff up” til yea can nae fix it”.

You've again posted pic's of another nice looking lot of plants; I recognise your first NOID from somewhere and when I remember I might have a name for you, but it's the second NOID that interests me and I'm very curious to see what the emerging inflorescence will produce.
As for the pic's of 'Predator' and 'Garnish' side by side, you can now see why I said the other day that I gave up trying to ID albo-marginated Neo's as they are so much alike in a lot of cases. Also, I see what you meant the other day when you said about your 'Medusa' with vertical leaves; most unusual; maybe also a result of tissue culturing.

Shirley – I thought of a way to try some new therapy on my back; when I awoke the other morning and it was so sore, I forced myself to climb the ladder and do some more ceiling scraping. I thought, it's already sore so why not; and you know what, after a few hours it started to ease off and I think it may have been because I was giving different muscles a workout they don't normally get. Any way it's much better now so that's a positive outcome.

I never thought about the possibility of our Neo 'Pink Stars' being NOVARs, I just thought it was a case of someone Just putting a “pet name” on a nice looking NOID. Anyway, what ever the reason, it's a nice plant and I'll keep growing it. I have to agree with what you say about the Mulford Foster hybrid not being registered and yet its children are, I have found a few unexplained strange things on the BCR since I started to use it more frequently but I guess because the info is entered by humans and all humans can make mistakes this can happen with anything. On the other hand, there may be a logical explanation for the Mulford Foster “thing”, maybe I'll have to put on my detective hat and see what I can find out.

I like your pic of Neo. 'Bruiser'; it's another hybrid from Chester Skotak (the master of variegated Neo's) This time he's used one of his favourite parents Neo. (Carolinae x Concentrica) but crossed it back to Neo. Concentrica so it has a double dose of “Concentrica goodness” in it and because of this, theoretically it should be a good strong grower . I love the pattern on your Hoehenbergia, it reminds me of the pattern on the skin of a snake I once saw at a reptile park a long while ago.

A few file pic's to finish with today, Pic.1 is another of my seedlings Neo. (Charm x Cracker Jack) x self, Pic.2 is Neo. 'Ferny Grove', Pic.3 is Neo. 'Fairy Dust', Pic 4 is another of my crosses, Neo. 'Concentrica' x ('Charm' x 'Cracker Jack') and Pic.5 is Neo. 'Enchantment'.

All the best, Nev.

Hi Everyone!

Hi Jean yes you are correct that was a pic of Neo’ ‘Shelldance’ in front of the group shot of Pic 5 I posted last. I think mine is getting a bit too much light so I am looking at possibly moving them but thought I would wait a couple of weeks given the sun has changed direction now in our back garden and they are getting a great deal more shade than the used to. I have removed the shade covers off them all now in this particular part of the garden and can already see an improvement in colour in some of the broms. Jean I laughed at your comment about us polishing our broms, I spray all mine with water before taking any pics because it really brings out the colour in them and they take on a whole different appearance when wet. Jean a perfect example is in your Pic 3 & 4, how awesome does your Neo’ ‘Mirlo’ look after you simply wiped it’s leaves down with a bit of water, takes on a totally different appearance and really brings out it’s wonderful colour.

Hi Sue sounds like you are all having a beautiful time with your daughters extended family, pleased to hear you made it to your first destination safe and sound. Are you missing your broms yet or are you enjoying the break from them? I just read April thread and hear you are missing your broms, I don’t blame you I get the same when we go away, I get brom separation angiety LOL and normally sneak a couple of buys in the car if I can and that normally helps some. Great brom pics you posted by the way.

Sue thanks for starting new April thread, great pic you used of your Aechmea ‘Dark Goddess'. What a bugger that you lost the thread you typed, I know what that feels like.

Hi Shirley I didn’t end up getting to the Market on Sunday as we ended up going over to a friend’s place and stayed overnight, we had a great time catching up with them, swimming and just kicking back and relaxing. And our girls got to meet Miley their new pup (cattle-dog x crossed x dingo), she is so beautiful and gentle and the girls really got along with her which was great as this means we can take them all when we go camping etc or to the beach.

Shirley by all means tease me LOL and post pics of all the broms you have with purple tones, I would love to see them and write their names down so that if I ever come across them down the track I can add them to my collection.

Shirley great pics you posted on 30/3, your Pic 3 Neo’ ‘Medusa’ pup is really colouring up nicely in the morning sun.

Shirley I totally understand why you like the Aechmeas, there are some really pretty ones out there well worth collecting and like you I don’t at all mind the toothy varieties either. By the way great pics of Aechmeas you posted on 29/03, I especially liked Pic 2 Ae. ‘Orlandiana Fine Lines’. Can’t wait to see pics of the one’s you just got on EBay and from Sue.

Hi Nev thanks for the fantastic advice for when using “Perlite”, you will be pleased to hear that I always use the AS approved Dust Mask when handling all my garden products and I wear gloves, I can’t afford not too with the asthma I suffer, it does not take much to trigger an attack, I could be just dusting the top of a cupboard and it triggers me off so whenever I am using any garden products or sprays I ensure I wear a mask. Most of my indoor cleaning products are homemade also because I cannot handle any of the sprays in the shops and I keep well and truly away from oven sprays because I had a very bad experience once whilst we were on holidays and stopped to get a bite to eat at a Bakery, I remember walking into the Bakery and tried to say good morning to the staff but did not even get the first word out because later I discovered they had just cleaned their ovens with oven spray and this triggered the most severe asthma attack I have ever had in my life. Luckily Joe came to the rescue with my ventolin out of my hand-bag (that was in the car as I only had my purse on me), I had passed out at the front door of the bakery because of lack of oxygen, then when I came to Joe knew to get me a sandwich lunch bag (paper variety) to breath into that I always kept in my handbag, we used to prime the bread bag with a couple of sprays of my ventolin so I could at least inhale some of my spray rather from the bag rather than trying to inhale some from the ventolin and possibly not getting enough spray. Now I have a “Spacer” that I use that works same, you prime it with ventolin and then inhale, it’s great.

Nev hope your back is on the mend real soon, make sure you take it easy and don’t overdo things, I know it’s easier said than done but rest is the key and what I enjoy doing when my back plays up is to promenade around the garden and do a bit of watering. You are so right though about when you work different muscles in your back that could be why your back is sore, I get the same as well and normally movement helps the pain rather than just sitting and thinking about the pain.

Nev I am excited to hear that you will be sending Shirley, Sue and I some of those seedlings you discovered that are “jumping out of their trays” and look forward to receiving them when you are ready.

Nev thanks I too really like Neo’ ‘Blackout’ and would be very intrigued to see Neo’ ‘Blackout’ crossed with Neo’ 'Mandella' that you mentioned, and would luv to see a pic down the track once the brom is mature to see the end result which I am sure would be awesome.

Nev thanks ever so much for writing me down for a pup of your Neo’ Meyendorffi variegated (Red Form), I am in no hurry as this brom addiction of mine is not going anywhere in a hurry LOL.

Nev totally agree that Shirley, Bree and I look at posting pics of our Neo’ ‘Dark Veil’ pups in 6months time when they are more mature so we can see if we all have the same plant. It’s impossible to tell until they mature.

Nev what wonderful Neo’ pics you posted on 31/3 and 1/4, I could not pic a favourite this time as I reckon they are all awesome looking broms.

Hi Ian great to see you posting twice in one day, also wonderful buys you posted pics of on 30/03, great looking broms that appear to be of good size and they look really healthy. Sure you will make / find room for them somewhere LOL.

Hi Bree great to hear from you, sounds like you have been keeping really busy in the garden. Hope you get the agro fish matter sorted as there is nothing worse than fish picking on each other in the fish tank; they tend to gang up on the weaker and kill them off if the tank is crowded.

Ah that reminds me that I have not told everyone the true “sad story” about my poor belated Goldfish named “Beaker”. I used to have a fresh water fish tank that I kept Goldfish in but this tank was full of “deformed” Goldfish because whenever I went to the pet-shop to buy Goldfish instead of bringing good quality one’s home I used to bring one’s home with deformities because I felt sorry for them and was worried about the pet-shop owner flushing them down the toilet. I used to keep them in quarantine for a couple of weeks before putting them in the main tank with the others. Most of the deformities were missing eye and fins etc. (fins grow back, eyeballs don’t). Anyway my favourite of the “deformed” Goldfish was one called “Beaker” that I had adopted and had for a couple of years, “Beakers” deformity was that he only had the one eye, the type of Goldfish that has HUGE protruding eye’s. Anyway one year when we lived on Hamilton Island, after we woke from having a big night out on the town, very hang over I decided to clean the Goldfish tank and stood on a chair to do so with a large bucket on the floor and cleaning pump in hand I proceeded to start cleaning the gravel without moving the Goldfish out of the tank as they were used to me cleaning the tank while they were in it because the tank was always pretty clean and it never mucked up the water that bad. Anyway “Beaker” was a very friendly Goldfish and if I had my hand in the water he used to come and sit in the palm of my hand which was a cute habit of his, which meant when I cleaned the tank I normally had to shoo him away on the odd occasion if he go too close, anyway on this day he did get too close to my hand and the cleaning pump and I saw “Beaker” veer off in a fright and swum and hid to the back of the tank. Upon having a quick glance I decided that “Beaker” was ok and that he had just got a fright and went and hid and it was not until I looked down in the bucket where I was pumping the water into that I saw this HUGE EYE looking up at me and then to my horry realised that I had sucked the only eye “Beaker” had right out of his head, anyway I started crying and sobbing and Joe ran over to me to see if I was ok and when I had told him what had happened he really told me off and we both started dry reaching every time we looked at “Beakers” eyeball in the bucket looking up at us. Anyway by this stage I was pretty hysterical and Joe was too angry at me to talk to so I decided I needed to ring the Pet-shop I had got “Beaker” from and blurted out to the owner sobbing loudly “My Goldfishes eye has fallen out of its head”, to which the lady said trying her best to settle me down “Oh Darl you poor thing sometimes that just happens, sometimes bacteria forms behind the eye socket and the eye simply just falls out, but sometimes they can still survive with just the 1 eye, to which I replied sobbing even louder by this stage “You don’t understand …my Goldfish “Beaker” only had the one eye because I adopted him from you with this deformity, but I sucked his only other eye out of his head with the vacuum pump while cleaning the tank so now he has no eyes”, to which I heard a long pause from the lady and she said to me “Mame, can you please hold the line for a bit whilst I go and converse with my daughter in the back office” to which I then heard her repeat the story to her daughter and all of a sudden heard loud hysterical laughing coming from the both of them, then the lady came back to the phone once she had managed to compose herself. Anyway to cut a long story short the lady said “Beaker” would not grow his eye back unfortunately but that he may survive without any eyes if I feed him by hand every day, which I did for 1 week before he passed away to Goldfish heaven. Anyway to this day my goldfish tank is empty as I have never forgiven myself for killing my poor beloved “Beaker” (sad face).

Anyway time to head as have heaps planned to do in the garden, weeding, make up more new garden beds and splitting pups. I have five more days off so am overjoyed that I am getting time to spend in the garden and with my broms. I stayed up until 11pm last night splitting pups and started about 7pm and still have more to split.

Hi to anyone else looking in or on the Sick List.

Take care and Happy Gardening!

Trish

Pic 1 – Brom group shot
Pic 2 – Neo’ ‘Purple Star’
Pic 3 – Neo’ ‘De Rolf’
Pic 4 – Lucy with a cheesy grin (see her snake bite scar on inner right leg)
Pic 5 – Neo’ ‘Bobby Dazzler’ (forgot to wet it) he he

Hello all, I have spent another busy day going through bags and boxes and tying to convince my Mum that she doesn't need to keep every box, bit of bubble wrap, pieces of used wrapping paper and used cards, as well as quite a bit of other stuff that she really needs to let go of. I'm not making too much of an issue though, and I only ask once and if she wants to keep it, then we put it back in the shed! Sigh! Anyway, we can move around in there now, and hopefully tomorrow we can sort through the last few bags and then start to set it up as a craft studio, so she can get in and play with all her gear.
Her garden could do with a make over, but I don't think I have the energy for that, but I might see how it is by the end of the week. I could be stir crazy by then!
Hi Bree, I guess Yamba will stay busy for a few weeks now, with school hols on the way? I used to have chooks but they kept making a mess while free ranging, and they cost more to feed than just to buy eggs. They weren't great layers for some reason. I also used to keep a pretty big fish tank back in my early 20's, and remember it being quite a drama to clean it all out. Now our goldfish live in the boat pond, so we don't have to do much except feed them occasionally, and pull a bit of plant life out if it covers too much of the top. Heaps of babies in there at the moment too, so they must be doing ok.
I hope you are enjoying being so busy.
Ian, I had a look at your NOID broms, but neither of them seems familiar to me. Your photo five looks really nice with those coloured centres.
Shirley, I'm glad you were able to get into the garden and get a bit achieved. You must be feeling tired but very satisfied!
My Aechmea 'Dark Godess' has had one pup (the photo) and looks to be getting a small nubbin on the base of old Mum so hopefully I will have some extras in the not to distant future. It is a Chantinii variety, and I grow it mounted on a tree that is protected from the southerly cold, and it gets northern sun all day. Seems to be the perfect spot, as I also have Aechmea chantinii growing there and pupping.
Big W has only had a very few Neos from The Olive Branch, and instead has the usual guzmania and Vriesea flowering table toppers. There was a whole tray of seedling/tissue culture V. splendens/splenreit, but they were $11 each (only bout 10cm tall) and I'm not sure they were from The olive Branch anyway. The Neos are always very green, but I'm not sure if thats to do with The O.B or Big W. I keep checking in case something new comes in. I live in hope.
I like your flowering Hohenbergia correia-araujoi. I bought one in flower, and despite many pups, haven't seen one flower yet.
Nev, no problem starting the new thread. It means I get to have a photo of my plant as the topic starter for the month. Sweet!
Lucky you to get two pups on your G. sanguinea. It sounds like you have also had success removing at least one of them? I think I paid $25 for mine from a BSQ show a few yers ago, and Ithink it came from the Dillings? I loved Ians tricolour one, and hope to get that one, one day. I have one of your G. sanguinea 'Flame' seedlings, and it has been very slow to grow, but still looks healthy as.
Your N' fairy Dust' looks stunning.
Trish, your asthma sounds like a very severe case. What a thing to have to live with, although I am sure you have got it under control and know exactly how to deal with it?
How lucky are you that your dogs get on well? That must make life much happier for all concerned, when you can socialise together with your dogs too.
Your story about Beaker, while bein quite sad, was aso a little funny! I'm sure it wasn't funny in any way at all for you! Poor Beaker.
Your brom group shot has some great colour in it and Lucy certainly does have a cheeky grin.
Well, its forecast to be quite cold here tomorrow! Brrr. It was hard enough to get out of bed this morning! I might try for a sleep in tomorrow!
Sue
Photo one is V. 'Red Dragon'
Photo two is the brom I found in Wagga, which I think might be Ochagavia litoralis? Its a bit small (the photo) but taken on my step daughters phone.
Photo three is Nevs V. heiroglyphica x platynema seedling (I think I got that right....going from memory)
Photo four is v. 'Angela' which i think is still using fertiliser, because it should be more pink/purple
photo five is Vriesea 'Zapita' (thanks Jen) which actually has leaves that curl under, but you can't see it from this angle.

Nev- my broms will be able to squash in on my raised garden beds in a flood dont worry about that. hehe!Or on our deck like the time before we had the garden built. Yes i do seem to be always busy with work, veggy garden, greenhouse, broms, fish tanks, house chores and a 9 year old daughter...oh and the boyfriend. hehe! We have a 4 foot fish tank and a 6 x 2 foot tank full of fish, mainly big plec. catfish (see photos). Ive inserted a wire barrier to save the other fish from my mean knifefish until i can sell him but his so cool. Cant have a big tank just for him though.
Sorry guys no more fish talk, i havent been out to my broms for ages so no new photos.

Hi everyone – It seems like the weather has taken a bit of a turn and it's raining this morning, so no work out in the yard today. I have a few “non-brom” associated bits and pieces I need to do and they can be done in the garage so I'll probably get them out of the way so I have “open slather” on the brom's when the sun comes out again.

Sue – It seems like you've been pretty busy at your Mum's and a garden makeover would be right up your street and a good way to vent your frustrations at being stuck inside sorting out stuff your Mum has hoarded over the years. It seems like we all become bits of hoarders as we get older, but it's good to occasionally look at what we have accumulated over the years as they very often are associated with happy memories of another time.

It seems like this thread is going more toward fish today than brom's but as they say, “a change is as good as a holiday' so I'll tell this little story as well. It's interesting to hear that you are now “free ranging” your gold fish in the “boat pond”. I once did a bit of casual carpentry work on a farm near where I lived and one of the farm workers had done something similar. One day when I was there working on the bails (for non-farmers that's where they milk the cows) Ernie who was the farm labourer was going down to bring the cows in for milking and he said, “Time to bring in the cows and feed the fish” as he headed off down the paddock. When he returned I asked what he had meant about feeding the fish and that's when he explained. There was this huge circular concrete water trough (about twenty feet across and four feet deep) for the cattle to drink from and Ernie had planted some Water Lilies in the centre and put in a few little Koi Carp a few years previously.. These loved the pond as they were able to stir up the mud on the bottom (as Carp like to do) and the day I first saw them I got quite a shock as by then they had been there for some years and had grown into quite large beautifully coloured specimens. All the care they ever got was just few Chook layer pellets tossed in the pond each afternoon when Ernie went to bring in the cows.

It seems like the northern side of your tree is the perfect spot for the “Chantinii type” Aechmeas because from what you say it seems like it's a bit of a sun trap which has created just the right micro-climate for these plants.

As for the Guz Sanguineas, I have only ever attempted to remove a pup from the Guz. Sanguinea on the occasions when it produced two; I can get the pup off OK but as you mentioned earlier, it almost destroys the Mother plant. Since I've had it it's only thrown double pups on two other occasions. Regarding the Guz Sanguinea seedlings you mentioned, I found they were very slow to establish any roots and grew very slowly and consequently gave them all away to other growers. It seems they are Guz. Sanguinea var. Brevipedicellata, and one of my friends who I gave some to, specialises in species and brought a couple in flower into a Brom. Society Meeting last year. They were growing mounted on a piece of “bush wood” and he told how he had found they preferred to be mounted rather than growing in a pot which could be the reason I found they seemed reluctant to make a good root systems. They are only a small growing plant with his biggest one being just six inches in diameter. I guess that's what I get from buying seed from an otherwise unknown supplier as although they weren't what he said they were, at least I did get a result and there are now dozens of plants spread all around the country as a result. To see a good pic of one in flower, go to:
http://www.orchidboard.com/community/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=3556

They're great pic's you've posted and the Red Dragon is a “ripper”; was that one of John Catlan's?

I'm pretty sure that the plant in your second pic is Ochagavia litoralis. I had one once but gave it to a friend up north as it didn't like the colder months down here.

I'm pleased to see the result of the seedling Vriesea that I swapped with you, you've done a good job with it and it looks great. I think V. heiroglyphica x platynema is correct, it sounds right anyway but without looking at the files I can't say for sure.

Vriesea Angela is another Vriesea that's very much under rated in my opinion and as you say, with more light comes more colour; the main thing I like about it is , that it's a good grower and pup producer and doesn't get too big like some of the other Vriesea hybrids.

Your last pic of Vriesea Zapita is an interesting one also a it is a hybrid made up from Vriesea (Racinae x Red Chestnut) x Gigantea. It has two species in its breeding, Racinae and Gigantea and as Racinae has recurved leaves, it's very likely that's where it inherited this trait from.

Trish – I read with interest your story about your asthma attack in the baker shop; it seems you should have been an inventor as your use of the bag full of Ventolin spray was really just a crude improvised “spacer”. How I wish I'd thought about that; my youngest son has had chronic asthma since he was about three years old and when I think of his early years and the trouble we had trying to synchronise the “puff” from the inhaler with his inhalations it was just so frustrating. Eventually he got a spacer, however they weren't available in the early years, but your idea would certainly have saved us a lot of heartache.

I like the story about “Beaker”; it seems you must be a kind soft hearted person. I have a brom friend who also had a pet fish called “Herbie”. Anyway poor old Herbie eventually went to the “big ocean in the sky” and Paul was left with this huge fish tank in his lounge room. Being the ingenious type of person that he is he had soon converted it to a terrarium containing small bromeliads. He even mad a little RIP marker and eventually put that in the tank as well, so I guess he's just a big “softie” like you. So there's an idea for your now empty fish tank and you can play with brom's inside when ever the weather doesn't allow you to go outside. You can read “Herbies” whole story at: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/bromeliad/msg0121425412403.html

You've posted great brom. pic's as usual as well as the one of your “cheeky” little dog. Is that wall he's sitting on what separates you from the “wetland” at the back of your yard?

Bree – It seems this day is just getting fishier by the minute. I never realised that Catfish were so nicely coloured as I've never seen them in a tank before. I've caught them and eaten them, but like a lot of fish, once they've been taken out of the water they loose a lot of their colour. Anyway, thanks for sharing the pic's with us.

I've raved on too much once again so I'll finish with a few brom pic's just to keep on topic and balance out our fish stories. Pic'1 is Neo. Aussie Dream 'Red Glow', Pic.2 is Neo. 'Bea. Hanson' x 'Rosea Striata' ,one of my earlier hybrids. Pic.3 is another of my Neo. 'Concentrica' x ('Charm' x 'Cracker Jack') hybrids, Pic.4 is Neo. 'Ice White River' and Pic.5 is my best clone of Neo. 'Marble Snow'.

All the best, Nev.

Hi all, another day spent working in the garden … and no rain interruptions either. A trip to the dump after lunch and then back into it again.

Nev, don’t overdo it with your ceiling scraping … remember, slow and steady wins the race.

Love your pics Nev, especially pic 1 of your seedling and also pic 3, neo Fairy Dust … if I haven’t already asked, could you please put me on your pup list for that one. Your neo Enchantment is coming along nicely.

Sorry, but it’s after 11:00 pm and I am so tired. I will finish this in the morning, I’m off to bed … ‘night all.

Hello again, it’s Wednesday morning and I will take up where I left off with last night’s post.

Trish, sounds like you had a nice couple of days with your friends and your girls now have a new friend too.

I will try to make good on my promise to take pics of all my broms with purple tones and if there are any that take your fancy, just let me know and I will save a pup for you.

Gee Trish, your asthma sounds awful but you are obviously well prepared in case of an attack.

I am really looking forward to getting Nev’s seedlings too. I have just bought a neo Blackout and I have neo Mandella and I think a cross of the two would produce some awesome looking neos, perhaps they could be called neo ‘Blackman’ though I don’t suppose that would be politically correct, would it?

Trish, your story of Beaker, the one-eyed goldfish and his unfortunate demise made me want to laugh initially, then cry, then give you a big hug ... then I imagined the eyeball in the bucket and felt really sorry for you (and Beaker).

Enjoy the rest of your week off.

Trish, I was looking at your pic of Lucy and saw you have the same link wall that we have around most of our gardens. I used to try to clean off the mould that continually grew on it with the water blaster as I loved it when it was nice and clean.

Then I decided to try something else and I put succulents in the space between the blocks and was surprised that they grew. My hope was to have a growing ‘succulent wall’ sort of like a vertical garden that looked after itself. I will try to find a pic, though it won’t be a recent one. Actually, if the succulents grow there, then maybe broms would too, especially the aechmeas that grow well in trees and the climbing mini neos … hmmm, something to think about.

I hope Lucy didn’t suffer too much from her snake bite. My first thought when I see a snake is the get Rebel away so he doesn’t get bitten.

Sue, I know how your Mum feels as I am a bit of a hoarder and we have what used to be a games room which is now more of a store room for ‘stuff’ that I can’t bring myself to dispose of.

I love the Ae Chantinii varieties and also Ae Orlandianas and am very happy to hear you might have some spare pups of Ae Dark Goddess in the not too distant future, thanks heaps.

Today is shopping day for us and I will check out Big W in the remote hope that they might have something nice in the brom section. They only ever have the flowering guzmanias with generic labels and they sell very few. Most of them end up on a clearance table after they have cut off the flower and overwatered the plant and they’re near dead. Their nursery manager is obviously not a brom fan.

Sue, my hohenbergia is taking so long for the actual flower to emerge … after waiting so long I just hope it’s worth the wait. What colour is the flower, please. Love all your pics, they’re just beautiful. Your pic 3 of Nev’s Vr hiero x platynema is gorgeous … not bad for someone who’s not really into growing vrieseas, hey!

Nev, I love your Vr hiero x platynema seedling in Sue's pic.

I don't have any fishy stories to add. The kids had goldfish when they were young and they still have big fish tanks in their homes and huge fish but too much work involved keeping the tanks clean and the fish happy … I’ll stick to my plants.

My pics are 1 – neo Bird Rock, 2 – neo Bold Streak x McWilliamsii, 3 – neo Ninja, 4 – a small section of my succulent wall

That’s it for me, have to get going now. Sorry about the long post ... but it's two days worth.

Bye, Shirley

yeah in Australia the catfish you catch arent colourful. You wouldnt have eaten the sort i have unless youve fished in Sth America. There called Plecostomus, there sucker catfish that eat algae.
1. My little Aechmeas pup is pink. 2. I love this one, Storm Warning. 3. I still havent moved my Gold Medal pup in the shade as you can see Nev. hehe!

Hello fellow bromeliaholics.
Today I tackled the potting shed! sigh. I filled about three large grain bags with more grain bags, plastic bags, ice cream containers, cat food tins and other assorted rubbish. Mum keeps it all because she thinks it will come in handy, which one or two would, but not every container that has passed through her hands. There was over 6 large bird cages (now all under the bench) and assorted food bowls for assorted animals, as Mum has birds, chooks, dogs, cat, guinea pigs and rabbits. anyway, all those bits are now in a big tub, all together. then I sorted pots into sizes and stacked them on a handy shelf and rounded up all the fertilisers into a container, and all the tools into a tub. Mum left me to it, as its too hard for her to say 'throw it out' and she has gotten to the point where she trusts me enough to not throw anything good out. Some of the rubbish she hasn't seen in years, so she reckons she wont miss it if she doesn't see it. She must have lost interest, because she hasn't gone out to see how good it looks. Unfortunately she is hooked on the computer these days.
I tried to do a bit of gardening, especially since I found a bag of lucerne hay to use as mulch, but then the chooks got into it and scratched it all out. Its very disheartening. tonight, while mum is watching her soaps, I will tackle a couple of kitchen cupboards, mainly just to search out more plastic tubs, tin cans and jars to throw out and make more room. I've asked Mum if she is ok with it, and I think she is happy that someone is tackling it for her, as its gotten too much for her to do, and world war three starts if her hubby tries to throw anything out. He has been enjoying doing tip runs.
Anyway, bree, your cat fish have great patterns. they remind me of foliage Vrieseas.
I like your Aechmea orlandiana pup. it is really pink. Was the parent this pink also, and fading with age? Your neo. 'Gold medal' doesn't seem to mind being in high light. It looks fabulous.
Nev, when Mum and I tackled the craft shed, we found lots of old photos and things, and it was a trip down memory lane. We sorted most of it into plastic tubs that mum can go through later when she feels like it. Its hard to find a place for everything when it all means so much. mum is a doll collector, and the dolls have taken over the house, see photo one, so everything else gets stored away until its needed.
I'm glad to know my Guz. sanguinea is brevipedicellata, as I have wanted that one too. I will go back and check out that link again later, as it looked like it had some nice photos to look at.
The V. 'Red Dragon' is a john Catlan seedling, and from what I hear, most of them resemble mine, and some can be redder still. I didn't think to look up V. 'Zapita' and made an assumption it was a species, hence leaving it with a small letter and no 's'. (what are they called?)
Your clone of N. 'Marble Snow' is really nice. Any spares?
Shirley, the flowers on Hohenbergia coreia-araujoi are very small, and if I remember right, yellow. They really are nothing to write home about. I like how the stem is so fluffy.
I think most people are hoarders to some degree. My hubby collects tools and mens junk in his shed. I guess I could be accused of hoarding bromeliads. I also store things that I might want later, but having a parent who does it is teaching me a lesson.
I hope you find a treasure in Big W. I am almost tempted to try and find a plant nursery here, but I don't think they would grow broms in the blue mountains?
I like your Neo 'Ninja' and the succulent wall looks great. I think you could be onto something with trying some broms in there too! Almost makes me want to go out and get some of those blocks! I don't have a wall!
Anyway, I will go get a photo of the dolls and then add my brom pics
Sue
Photo one is a portion of the dolls
photo two is vriesea 'Maroon Shadow'
Photo three is Neo. 'Debbie' just colouring up
Photo four is Neo. 'Downs Autumn' with a bit of burn to the tips
Photo five is Billbergia 'Super Duper Grace'

Hi everyone – After the rain stopped late yesterday morning it remained overcast and cool for the rest of the day so I finished “Seasolling” the other half of my brom's that I hadn't done the day before, so it wasn't a wasted day (brom wise) after all. More rain overnight and it's quite cold here this morning so I don't know what I'll do today until the sun comes up. Maybe a bit more ceiling scraping as Shirley says, “slow and steady wins the race”.

Shirley – You're already down for a pup of Fairy Dust after Jen who was first on the list. It's strange that you both have similar tastes as she asked for Neo. 'Fairy Dust' and Neo. 'Burgundy Moss' one day and you asked for the same two the next day. Is there a bit of mental telepathy going on there?

The crossing of Neo. 'Mandella' with Neo. 'Blackout' does sound like the perfect recipe for some wonderful dark brom's but never forget “Mother Nature”; she can sometimes “bugger things up” by reverting back to something away back in the “family tree” of one or both of these plants and you could finish up with something entirely different looking. Mandella has dark coloured plants all back through the breeding line but as I can't find Neo 'Blackout' on the BCR it's unknown what was on that side of the family tree, so you sow your seed and you take your chances. I have a Neo. 'Gold Fever' which I crossed with Neo. 'Noble Descent' and many of these seedlings are plain colours in shades of pink even though Neo. 'Gold Fever' is very heavily spotted.

I think Hohenbergia correia-araujoi is like a lot of brom's with spectacular foliage, and has flowers that are quite insignificant and mainly of botanical interest only and usually disappointing after a very long wait to see them.

Looking at your succulent wall reminded me of some pictures I once saw of a Brom wall in N.Z. It was a long sloping retaining wall alongside a driveway which was initially planted with a few brom's just after the wall was built to take away the “raw look” and then another pic three years later, revealed an almost solid wall of brom's..... fantastic stuff!

As for the Vriesea Hieroglyphica x Platynema seedling Sue posted, that was from a cross I did once on a “momentary whim” just because both plants were I flower at the same time. I was going around about 9.00pm one night looking for something that had been chewing the leaves on another plant and saw these plants both with open flowers at the peak of readiness for pollination, (In the wild, these plants are pollinated at night usually by moths or tiny bats) so I cross pollinated them. I can't take the credit for Sue's seedling as it was Mother Nature and Sue who did the rest.

I can't help loving the silver streaks of the underside of the Neo Bird Rock' leaves, they always fascinate me. Your Neo. 'Bold Streak' x 'Mc Williamsii' is quite different to mine as yours has much more pink on the top of the leaves; maybe it's that Queensland sun? Wonderful shape on that Neo. 'Ninja' but I'd have to be careful of those savage looking spikes.

Breeindy – Great pic's you've posted today. Your first one looks like a plant of Ae. 'Reverse Ensign', but what about the colour of the pup? It looks like your Ae. 'Reverse Ensign' (which is a sport of Ae. Ensign) may have sported itself and produced yet another form of Ae. 'Ensign' which if it retains that colour, in my opinion would be worth naming and registering on the BCR.

Neo. 'Storm Warning' is a beautiful plant which reminds me a bit of Neo 'Burgundy Moss' with a nice green centre.

Sue – Gee Sue, it sounds like your Mum has her own private Zoo; she must be a nice lady as anyone who likes animals is OK in my book; and to have so many animals she must be a bit more “special”. Anyway all of your cleaning and sorting hasn't been in vain as the chooks like the Lucerne hay; they must have thought Santa had come already.

Thanks for the feedback on Red Dragon, I must look at the one Jen gave me as it's still only small but doesn't have the colour of yours so maybe I'll increase the light a bit and see what happens.

You mention about the “lower case “ letters for species, I'm always getting into trouble for not doing this. After five years of technical drawing during my apprenticeship (over fifty years ago) I still find it hard to use lower case for the start of a name, it just doesn't look right. I know I'm not conforming to the BCR “rules”, but it's what I feel comfortable with and if people don't like it, well they can always write another name tag.

Sorry about the Neo. 'Marble Snow', I don't have any spares of that clone and I already have a waiting list of six, but it's a pretty good pupper so I'll add your name also. I noticed another plant among my marbled type Neo's the other day with a Marble Snow tag, but it had a much different centre with a cream/pinkish colouring which I don't remember seeing before. When I looked at the back of the tag I see it came from you. What do you know about it was it a Neo. 'Marble Snow' or a Neo. 'Marble Snow' hybrid?

As for your pic's all I can say is WOW! That black “Gollywog” type in the front with the yellow shirt reminds me a one I had as a little boy and she was called “Elsie” (haven't a clue why I called it that) anyway Elsie and I were great mates. There were no racial barriers in our home and she went everywhere with me until I grew out of her. You see I grew up in a small neighbourhood where there was also an Italian, English, and German family and kids from all of these families played happily together with some of our best friends who were aboriginal kids who lived in Shellharbour. I suppose you could have called us kids the “League of Nations”, but we all played together without a hint of racism and it wasn't until I went to work at the steelworks that racism poked up its ugly head.

Out of your plant pic's, the ones I like the best are firstly the Neo. 'Downs Autumn' which is similar to the two variegated Neo's I posted a short time back which were seedlings bred by a South African “Brom Friend” of mine. (Do you have any spares to swap?) Secondly the Billbergia 'Super Duper Grace' which I hadn't seen before. Also what is the Bill. on the left of that one? I like that as well. I meant to tell you I was looking at the pups on the Ae. Bromeliifolia 'Rubra' yesterday and they have grown quite large, but I'll try and find something to pack one in and get it off to you, next Monday.

I'll finish now with a few more Neo file pic's and Pic.1 is Neo. 'Bill Morris' just starting to colour up; Pic.2 is Neo. Blushing Tiger; Pic.3 is Neo.'Black Forest', Pic.4 is Neo. 'Brush Stroke' and Pic 5 is another of the seedlings from my Neo. 'Painted Lady' sport.

All the best, Nev.

Hi again - I had intended posting this pic of Hohenbergia correia-araujo flowers for Shirley but remembered I can only post five pic's at a time so here it is, and you'll probably need a magnifying glass to see the flowers they are so small.

All the best, Nev.

Nev, the weather there sounds like the weather here. We lit the fire last night, and have had it going all day (on low) to dry the washing. Today was tackle the laundry day, and another room that you can now swing a cat in! I also got my hands on the leaf blower as the autumn leaves are everywhere.
Mum is a nice lady, and very much into baby dolls that look real. She has just started making them, and her painting skills are paying off, as they look so real. They are vinyl, and she paints in all the veins and creases e.t.c, and then they get baked. Then she puts the hair in with a needle, one strand at a time! No wonder she hasn't got the urge to get in and muck anything out! I'm not sure what we will tackle next, as I can feel her patience wearing thin, and shes had enough. Hopefully she can keep up with throwing out useless stuff.
As for the writing of names, when I attended Tafe for horticulture classes, they drummed it into us, and we lost points on essays e.t.c. if we didn't get it right. I try to do it right when I post on the internet, just in case any of my old teachers are looking in. lol. I think it helps though, for anyone who wants to look something up, if they know wether its a species or a cultivar. We were also taught that you can't abreviate anything (as in Neo.) until you have written it in its entirety at least once, and then you can abreviate after.
No problem about that Neoregelia 'Marble Snow'. I can live without it. heh heh. As for the one I sent you, I think it was labelled N. 'Marble Snow Pink Throat' but I wasn't sure if that was a description of it? I assumed it was straight 'Marble Throat'. There is one on the FCBS photo index called N. 'Marble Pink' could that be it?
I don't have any pups on N. 'Downs Autumn' yet. It is quite a slow grower. Also, I'm not sure which Billbergia that is next to B. 'Super Duper Grace' until I get back and have a look. And thats assuming I haven't hung it elsewhere, as I do.
It is difficult to post of the larger broms. I have been buying the large poster tubes recently, for just that purpose. They are usually heavy too, so they use the whole 500gms alot of the time. I am happy to fix you up for some postage if it gets a bit pricey. I can't remember if I am sending you anything large either, but I did get some polystyrene boxes from the waste station to do larger orders in. I think I have all your requests in our Dmails, so will check that when I am back.
Where is your N. 'Brush Stroke' from? It is very similar to one that alot of us have been trying to ID. I note its not in the FCBS photo index. Is it registered?
I will add another Doll pic so you cn see the babies, then its back to broms.
photo one is 'the boys'
photo two is B. 'Dark Ladd'
Photo three is a small Canistrum seidelianum
Photo four is xNeophytum 'Burgundy Hill'
Photo five is from a friend in Tully and is xQuesmea 'Mt Tyson'
Sue

Hi all, here we are, almost at the end of another week, so quickly.

Bree, nice colours in your pics, neo Storm Warning is lovely. I will definitely get your parcel off to you next Monday (8th April) as we are thinking of going away for a few days the week after.

Sue, I will post your parcel on Monday, 8th as well. You sound so busy, do you ever stop? Your Mum is very lucky she has you to sort through her belongings.

As usual there was nothing exciting in Big W’s garden department but I did buy some orchid mix as I have to repot a couple of my alcantareas as they have grown much too large for the pots they are in at the moment.

I was wondering how I might attach broms to my succulent wall until they take root … any ideas. The succulents are easy as I place them into the space between the blocks when they are very small and by the time they are too big for the space they are well attached, so no problem.

Nev, thanks for adding me to your list for a neo Fairy Dust pup … it’s a lovely brom. Not sure about the mental telepathy between Jen and myself but we do seem to have a fondness for similar broms.

Nev, thanks for the pic of hohenbergia correia araujo’s flowers. I am quite disillusioned to hear from yourself and Sue that the long awaited bloom will be insignificant. But, like you say, it does have spectacular foliage.

Nev, I have collected a few seed pods from my euodia tree and will send them off to you on Monday, 22nd April and by then I hope to have some neo pups ready for you too.

Sue, love your Mum’s dolls and they certainly look real, she is very talented.

I love your Canistrum seidelianum, what size does it grow to and dare I ask, do you have any spares.

My pics are 1 – neo Beefsteak, 2 – neo Hannibal Lector, 3 – bill Kyoto

Bye for now, Shirley

Good morning everyone, almost the end of another week and then back out in the garden at the weekend for some of you.

Sue – Your Mum must be quite an artist, I can't get over how realistic those dolls look even after a very close look they still look like real babies. Have her artistic genes been passed on to you as well, and if so, when are we going to see some of your work?

As for the writing of plant names, I understand the importance of doing it correctly, it's just that I always seem fall back into my old tech. drawing habits, and besides 90% of brom growers couldn't give a bugger anyway.

Thanks for the idea of the post tubes, I never thought about that. I have sent smaller plants in tubes before but not large ones and that will probably be the best option so I'll measure the height of the plant and see if they have a suitable tube at the P.O. Today.

I bought Neoregelia 'Brush Stroke' from an old bloke who was selling his collection about six years ago, he said he originally bought it and a lot of others from a nursery in Queensland but couldn't remember the name of it or the nursery. I have searched though the BCR the FCBS and a few other brom indices but have never been able to find it.

It's obviously unregistered like so many of the plants we buy these days but at certain stages of it's growth it looks very much like my Neo. 'Manoa Beauty' as well as one of the seedlings I grew from the cross of Neo. (Charm x Cracker Jack) x self but until it can be otherwise proved for sure, I'll keep the name I bought it with.

That name tag in Billbergia 'Dark Ladd' looks familiar, did you get your plant from Ross? I got one from there but it's very dark (almost black) but devoid of the attractive silver banding like yours. How much light are you giving yours? My plant's under 75% beige shade cloth so maybe it needs to be out from under the shade cloth, what do you think?

Shirley – You say you are going away for a few days, should I still send you a few seedlings on Monday 8th or wait until you get back?

I'm looking forward to the seeds from your Euodia tree which hopefully I can get to grow . I forgot to mention in my response to Sue, she had asked for some seed from my Pony Tail Palm, but unfortunately it didn't set a single seed, sorry Sue.

It seems like there are a few plants of Neoregelia 'Beef Steak' around which all look different. The one on the BCR doesn't look like yours or mine....... see: http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&id=3094#3094
…..and mine doesn't look like yours either, (I'll see if I can find a pic.) so would the real Neo. 'Beef Steak' please stand up!

Although looking at the three plants, I must say I prefer yours the most both for shape and colour but your plant looks more like one I have called Neo.'Powder Puff'. (Pic1) This plant has been grown in very high light but the other one I have that was grown beneath shade cloth is closer to the colour of yours but unfortunately I don't have a pic for comparison.

That's it for to-day as I have lots of appointments so to finish Pic1 is Neo. 'Powder Puff' grown out in the open and just brought into the shade house to photograph. Pic 2 is Neo. 'Catlan's Leopard', Pic.3 is Neo. 'Champers', Pic.4 is a Neo. Concentrica x ('Charm' x 'Cracker Jack') seedling I bred and Pic.5 is another of my seedlings, Neo. 'Carchorodan' x 'Concentrica'.

All the best, Nev.

Hello everyone. Very chilly here but the sky is blue. I am waiting for the sun to warm a bit so I can go take lots of pics. I want to update my brom files as I lost a lot of pics when I accidently deleted a file full of info on all my plants and family history.
Lucky I had a backup memory stick , but I had not updated that for about 6 months . I have a lot of pics of some of the broms when they were first bought but I have no pics of about 50.
I will get out with a spray bottle of water and hopefully get pics of nice shiny broms.

I was interested to see Shirley's neo. Beefsteak..
I have one given to me by the lovely Leisa quite a few years ago which does really well. It looks just like the one on the link posted above. I love the even red color with the small spots.
My pic was taken back in 2011. Its grown since then and had pups.

I see the sun climbing above the trees now so I had better get out and get my pics.

I will post some later.
I bought another new brom yesterday.
Nev. I fell in love with your neo. Marble Snow and when I saw neo. Pink Marble Snow for a reasonable price, I had to buy it.
There is also a beautiful neo. Ice White River which I would have liked , but I have reached the end of my plant finances at the moment, having just bought 3 more neos...Predator, Cane Fire and concentrica.
I do like the white as it makes such a contrast to the darker reds etc.

Better move..
Jean.

hello all,
well today was cleaning the kitchen cupboards day. They weren't too bad, just alot of jars and out of date tea bags and coffee and some dust. Mind you, I didn't get through all of them, as I need to leave myself something to do tomorrow :-)
Shirley, as Nev asked, should I hold off to send you a parcel till when you get back? Canistrum seidelianum is a small grower, about the size of a hard grown Aechmea orlandiana, but gets a nice orange flower. I don't currently have a spare, but if you can remind me early next week, I will add it to the list I have at home. I could probably make a memo on this computer, but then I'll get confused if I have too many lists going. Maybe I will just scroll back through this thread? Anyway, no doubt you and nev will remind me if I repost a photo of a plant you like.
So, no bargains at BigW? Probably just as well, because where would you put them?
As for your garden wall, what about using a tent peg to hold the roots, if there is enough space between the blocks? I can't imagine how else you could do it.
The dolls I took a photo of are part of Mums collection, but not the ones she has made herself, although hers are just as good. Mum has always been a talented painter. I would like to have a go at painting, but just haven't found the time. I think I would invest in a painting class before I set out. I will see if I can get a photo of the one she is currently working on. She is at the stage of adding hair, one strand at a time! Nobody minds the doll pics do they?
I have to add your Neo. 'Beefsteak' is not the usual one I am familiar with. Jeans one is more the norm, from what I have seen. Is yours receiving much light, Shirley?
Nev, there is a whole world of collectors with those life-like dolls, and instances of police breaking into cars to rescue abandoned babies! They are very life like! I did get some artistic genes from my Mum, and we used to do alot of different crafts, which we then sold at the markets in katoomba, when I lived there. These days I don't do alot of craft, and recently donated all my fabric, paints and anything resembling craft gear, to a local craft group. I would like to have a go at painting some large canvases with bromeliads at some stage, and maybe designing some shirts and/or mugs. Maybe if I get to the point where I can't mnage my broms anymore, that would be an outlet for me?
I wonder if your Neo. 'Brush Strokes' is the same as the one in these parts? most around here are likely to have come down from Qld. A google search doesn't come up with anything at all. maybe it is a pet name? And a good one at that, because it describes it beautifully. Lets register it!
Billbergia 'Dark Ladd' did come from Ross at Pinegrove, and I imagine it is an Alan ladd creation. I grow it under 75% beige cloth also, on the north facing side, where it receives no shadow all day. I don't think I would try it in direct sunlight untill I have 4-5 to play around with, and as there is no sign of pups yet...........
gee, that neo. 'Catlans Leopard' is a beauty! Is that your plant? If so, I am sure there is a waiting list as long as my arm, but put me on the end of it anyway. if its not your plant, can anyone tell me where to get one? I'd even pay for that! heh heh. Neo. 'Champers' isn't bad either!
Jean, sorry to hear you lost some of your photos. I have soooo many now, and burnt most to disc, but hardly ever add new ones now. I really should check through them and make sure I have a mature photo of them all. I hope you get nice day for taking photos.
Glad to hear you have been picking up some nice broms here and there. I might be ble to dig up a Neo. 'Marble Snow' for you, even though its not the extremely nice clone that nev has, but they still get a goodly ammount of white. I will dig out a pic once I am back home. (remind me)
Photo one is xNeotanthus 'Firefoam'
Photo two is Aechmea 'April Showers' (a weibachii) thanks Nev.
Photo three is Aechmea 'Red Bands' and as you can see, that very red pup is now growing out to be normal.
photo four is Aechmea 'Alvin Purple' a John Catlan creation. I can't find it as being registered though, so lets just say its a blanchettiana hybrid. no full sun for this one though. he was very cagey about the cross, so i can't tll you what it was. he parted with these to Wendy, Jen and I, so I was the first in NSW to have one. Lucky eh?
Photo five is a pic of 'Dumplin' Mums baby on the go.
Sue

Hi everyone, it’s Friday night again and it’s raining ... again, looks like it could be a wet weekend coming up.

Nev, posting on Monday 8th is good, it’s the following week we are planning a few days away, so posting on Monday 15th is out.

I think my neo Beefsteak might be a bit sun bleached, I will post an earlier pic as it was darker before going out into the garden.

I love your pics Nev, neo Catlan’s Leopard is just stunning and so is your neo Champers, can I ask you please to add my name to your list for a pup from neo Champers. Seems I ask to have my name added to someone’s list every day.

Jean, my neo Beefsteak used to be darker in colour but never the bright red of the one on the BCR or the lovely one in your pic, is it in very bright light?

Sue, I imagine you were planning on posting my parcel on Monday 15th since you’re away till next week so if you don’t mind, could you hold off posting mine till Monday 22nd please, but I will post yours on Monday 8th if that’s OK.

I don’t think a tent peg would work to hold broms on the wall … it really needs to be some sort of glue or sticky stuff. The blocks are concrete, not sure if broms would be happy there or not but I will give it a bit more thought, maybe try a few different things. Is there any such thing as an ‘all weather’ tape?

I just love the doll your mum is working on … and I just can’t believe how real she looks, even the pose is so realistic. I wish dolls had looked like that when I was a child … I probably would NEVER have grown up. I reckon even now, it would hard to resist picking up and nursing such a beautiful ‘baby’.

Sue, my neo Beefsteak is out in the garden and gets quite a bit of sun … maybe a bit too much. As for neo Catlans Leopard, I have seen it on eBay on occasion but not recently. I have my name on Trish’s neo Leopard waiting list.

I have never heard of xNeotanthus, I’m guessing it’s a cross between a neo and a ? what. I love it, Sue, do you have a spare or does anyone know where I can get hold of a xNeotanthus Firefoam, please. There I go again !!

My pics are 1 – an older pic of neo Beefsteak, 2 – neo Pinstripe, 3 – NOID neo (purple Trish)

Have a good weekend everyone, bye for now

Shirley

yes Nev my plant is Ae. 'Reverse Ensign' think the pink pup is just from all the sun it gets. I couldnt remember the name and the tag just said Ae. Orlandiana, love your 'Catlan's Leopard'.
Sue those dolls are lovely, so life like.
Rain on and off here, im sick of it. Ive been trying to jog everyday but keep getting wet. hehe!
Pinstripe is nice Shirley, nice colours and your NOID has nice colours too.
1. Leopard- anyone have this one?, ive never heard of it. 2. Norman Bates

Hello everyone. I have finally taken pics of all my broms. Well, nearly all. There are a few old tatty ones from when I first started with broms. Thery were in the collection of epis I bought . They were pretty tatty at the time and have done nothing much since. The exception is bill. Gerda who just grows happily anywhere.

I have all the older plain looking ones at the back of the open shadehouse. They get lots of light and are quite big. They fill the space nicely and I am not going to even think about trying to wade in among them to get pics or any names. I know one is a very large one with a very large pup. Its labelled compacta which one would take to mean compact...lol

I was moving pots in the greenhouse to get pics and as I removed and old flower head from mt aechmea recurvata x recurvata, I found a fat black seedpod. I put the seeds onto the end of the container where I put the few other seeds I found a few weeks ago.

I have put the recurvatas out in the open as they dont color much inside.

Shirley, my neo. Beefsteak has lived in both the greenhouse and the shadehouse under green shadecloth. It has been a nice color right from when I got it as a pup but has darkened with age. I like it very much. I have a very nice pup from it and another coming.

I didnt realise I had so many broms until I started taking pics. ( approx. 154)
I did list them all a week or so ago but getting out and spraying with the water , checking the name off then taking the pics, it seemed like so many more..... boy, it wore me out.
Hubby thought it was funny seeing me spraying the broms with my little bottle of rainwater .
The rainwater washed the leaves nicely.
I have a question on nidularium Ruby Lee...
I have two..... Ruby Lee and Ruby Lee variegated...
I cannot find pics of any like mine. The plain on eis just like the other without the stripes, lovely color under the leaves.

pic 1 nidularium Rby Lee

pic 2 nidularium Ruby Lee varigate

pic 3 neo. Lambert's Pride ( I forgot I had this one)

pic 4 neo. B J Fire (bought as a pup recently, but obviously not as its flowering . )

pic 5 neo. Jean Black

Jean.

A few more...

pic 1 new neos Predator and Cane Fire.

pic 2 neo Hannibal Lector after I removed a very large pup.

pic 3 aech. Fosters Favorite. ( this one likes to climb up so I have him against the mesh)

pic 4 my new neo Martin varigate. ( this was a good buy with a very large pup attached but now removed)

Sue, thank you for the offer of a Marble Snow.
I am always open to any plants that need homes
I am quite happy to pay and would always pay for postage too.

Jean.

This message was edited Apr 6, 2013 8:15 AM

This message was edited Apr 6, 2013 3:04 PM

Hi everyone – Well yesterday we got some good and bad news. The bad news is that my wife needs triple by-pass surgery and the good news is she can have the operation this coming Thursday. As the two of us have always looked at the positive side of things, we're looking forward to getting it all sorted out and everything back to normal again very soon. So if I'm missing from this forum for a day or two, don't think I've deserted you all, it's just that I have more important things I need to do.

Jean – Seems like you pressed the wrong button like I have on many occasions. Far be it from me to tell anyone what to do with their computer but as I was caught out the same way a few years back I will share with you what I know. When you delete something it isn't necessarily deleted, it is moved to the “Recycle Bin”; personally I think it would be better if it's called an archive file as it would make things a lot clearer. Anyway, while ever it's in this “Recycle Bin” it can be retrieved, you just open the recycle bin file, select the file you accidently deleted and then select the “restore” button which is on the left side of the screen; the file will then be restored to its original location.

It's only when you empty the recycling bin that you actually “delete” the files and make them inaccessible to you. The thing is that anything you enter on your computer is recoverable as long as you can get someone with the knowledge and the programme/s to do it. I know how important Family History is so I think it would be worthwhile taking your computer to a recovery expert to have the files recovered. You may have seen on the news where the police are always confiscating the computers of criminals, well this is because they have access to these experts that can find out information from deleted files and possibly help solve a crime.

I was once told by an expert that what ever you put on a computer is still on there, it's just a matter of finding it. There are also packages available whereby you can do it yourself and to find out more about them just type “deleted file recovery” into Google to see what is available. Here is just one example: http://www.pchelpsoft.com/data-recovery/?gclid=CK6OxeKetLYCFcYipQodx3UAWA

There are also a number of free do-it-yourself programmes available to down load and to see these, go to : http://pcsupport.about.com/od/filerecovery/tp/free-file-recovery-programs.htm

I'm certainly no computer expert but I hope this little bit of info. can somehow help to recover your files.

Sue – I'm not having much luck in finding a tube large enough to accommodate your pup (or should I now say plant) of Ae. Bromeliifolia Rubra. If I get time today I'll see if I can make something by cutting down and joining a couple of broccoli boxes together as I can't seem to find anything long enough. If I'm unsuccessful I guess you'll just have to wait for the next lot of pups, either that or drop in and pick it up if you're down this way in the near future.

Do you have a picture of the Neo. 'Brush Stroke” that's getting around up in your area so I can compare it with the one I have? If they are the same I think registering it would be a good idea even though we don't have names of the parents or the hybridiser, it would at least prevent future confusion.

That pic of Neo. 'Catlan's Leopard' isn't my plant, it was a friends plant from Brisbane. He swapped me a pup which unfortunately I lost to rot about five years back. However I now have another which is a beautiful big plant and is just starting to colour up. I'm happy to say this was a much appreciated gift from Jen as I'd been searching for a replacement from a reliable resource for quite a while. It has no sign of pups yet but you're on the top of the list for when it does anyway. Neo.'Champers' was one I swapped with the son of the hybridiser. It's a Rob Smythe hybrid bred from Neo. (carolinae x concentrica) x 'Painted Lady' as the seed parent and crossed with an unknown pollen parent.

As I said yesterday, how lifelike are those dolls. I can understand when you say there are documented cases of police breaking into cars thinking there was a baby inside when all the time it was a porcelain doll.

Your xNeotanthus 'Firefoam' is a nice looking plant, I haven't seen that one before and in fact never knew there was such a bi-generic hybrid as xNeotanthus. I also meant to ask, what date are you due home from your break as I'll hold off sending anything until after then.

Shirley – I'll try and get some seedlings posted on Mon 8th to you and Trish at least but if I don't I'm sure you'll understand, as things are a bit “up in the air” here at the moment.

There's no problem adding you to the list of others who want a pup from Neo. 'Champers', but I need to warn you, there are quite a few on the list.

Shirley, a xNeotanthus is supposedly a bi-generic hybrid between a Neoregelia and a Cryptanthus. I say “supposedly” as neither parent has been identified. Don't ask why, but for some strange reason, “Hummel” who was the hybridiser never listed the names of parents of any of the hybrids he bred, so I guess we just have to accept that he says it is a xNeotanthus.

I like your pic's of Neo's Pinstripe and NOID Neo (purple Trish), they are both nice looking plants, and once again, can you add those to my “Wish List” please?

Breeindy – I like the two pic's you've posted today. To answer your question about Neo 'leopard', there is a Neo 'Leopard' registered with the BCR but unfortunately there's no pic's shown. When I read the description though it says that the name was later changed to Neo.‘Rainbow Carcharodon’ and there are pictures of this, but they are nothing like your plant; so I think you Neo. 'Leopard' is one of many plants with unregistered “pet names”. It still doesn't alter the fact that it is still a desirable plant though. As for your Neo. 'Norman Bates', it's a beautifully marked plant, but unfortunately those savage prickles put it out of my reach.

A few file pic's to finish with today Pic.1 is Neo. Cruenta 'Broad Leaf', Pic.2 is a Neo. 'Gespacho' pup and the next three are some of my own creations starting with Pic's 3 and 4 two more of my Neo.'Concentrica' x ('Charm' x 'Cracker Jack') hybrids, Pic. 5 is Neo. 'Painted Lady' (sport) x 'Ferny Grove'.

All the best, Nev.

Nev, thank you for the info on retrieving the lost files.
I had already deleted from the recycle bin before I realised it was the wrong file gone.
I did try some software to retrieve them but as I do not speak geek tech, it was useless.
All the recovered files came back in tech language and there were so many, I gave up .
I was lucky I had a back up file for nearly all the family history and also for a lot of the earlier plant pics.
Most of those lost were last years more recent ones which I had not added to the back up files.
You know what i now do... back up everything regularly...
Jean.

Hello all,
Shirley, I will hold off posting a parcel to you till the 22nd, which will give me plenty of time to get them organised. Nev, I will send yours this week, if I get them organised by Tuesday, or the following monday if I am unorganised!
Shirley, maybe you could use a hot glue gun on the wall? It would only work if the broms have a woody bit of stolon to apply it too, as the leaves will fall off eventually, so no point glueing them. I'm not aware of any tape that sticks to cement, but maybe you could try a silicone based glue? Its a tricky one.
Mums doll doesn't even have a body yet! Mum wrapped her up so it looked like she does. She has aheap of them that she nurses regularly (and takes on outings) and another 2 or three waiting to be made. Shes a doll-a-holic.
We haven't done any cleaning/organising today, but have plans to tackle the pantry in an hour or so. gulp!
My xNeotanthus (as Nev said, Neo x Cryptanthus) hasn't done anything much since I've had it, and thats about 3 years I think? I'm not even sure how it will pup, as Crypt. pups seem to sit on top, where as Neos come from down under. If it ever looks like flowering or pupping, I will add a photo and you can remind me then, if you haven't found one by then. Sometimes they come up on Ebay, but not recently.
Bree, not to worry, its been raining on and off here all week, and I'm about 900kms away from you! I checked out the forecast for the rest of the week in Coffs.........showers every day! Just the usual. Neo. 'Norman Bates' looks nice. Is it much different to N. 'Hannibal Lector'? I'm up for a swap if you ever get a pup and head back down this way.
Jean, Nidularium 'Ruby Lee' is the plant in your second picture, which is a variety of Nid. innocentii. I'm not sure what your first photo is of, but could be Nid. rubens. It will be easier to identify when it is mature and flowering. Your Neo. 'B J Fire' I think is xNeostropsis 'B-Fire' which is one Leisa used to have. It should go very red when in higher light. In your next lot of photos you have your aechmea 'Fosters favourite' listed as a Neo. I wasn't sure if thats how it was labelled for you, or if you are having a senior moment (cheeky eh?) heh heh.
Nev, thanks goodness they have got to the bottom of your wifes troubles, but what a big operation she has ahead of her. Give her the best from Hubby and I and we will all try to survive Nev withdrawals while you are otherwise occupied. It seems that the surgery can be done very quickly, which is a good thing. No good waiting around with a dicky heart!
If its all too hard with the Aechmea bromelifolia plant, leave it till theres a smaller one available Nev. I've lived this long without it! I'd hate to be the cause of stress for anyone. I will be home in a couple of days, so yes please to the parcel. I need something nice to give me a pick up. Its been quite a hard week, although am getting plenty of back rest between cleaning bouts.
I do have a photo of the plant I thought looked like your N. 'Brush Stroke' so I'll put that on as photo one. What do you think?
Well, almost time to start another sorting job, so I'll post the rest of the photos and be off till tomorrow.
Photo two is xCanmea 'galaxy'
Photo three is a basket of N. 'chiquita linda' (good use for scrap shadecloth, as the birds knicked the coconut fibre)
Mmm, I thought I'd remeber the name of the minis when I posted them, but seems I forgot. I thought photo four was N. 'Flare Up' but it doesn't look like the one on the FCBS photo index
Photo five is one of my favourite minis. neo. 'pepper'
Sue

Hi all, we have had a nice sunny day here today, just a shower of rain late this afternoon. It has finally cooled off a bit the last few days.

Bree, glad you like my broms. I’m pretty sure your neo Leopard and Nev’s Catlan’s Leopard are one and the same. I remember Trish saying she bought hers as neo Leopard too. I have a neo Pink Leopard pup, I hope it grows up to look like the one shown on the BCR.

Jean, I guess I have another NOID in the neo I purchased as ‘Beefsteak’. Mine is a large brom, looks much bigger than yours so I guess it’s not the real thing. Your neo Jean Black looks very nice, the spray does make them look lovely and shiny … might have to try that.

Nev, I sent you a D-mail this morning. Please don’t worry about sending the seedlings, I’m in no hurry and understand you have more important issues to deal with. Please give Ailsa our best wishes, we’ll be thinking of you both and we’ll miss you on the forum.

Sue, thanks for delaying posting to me till the 22nd, that will work out well. If you are listing on eBay this week, be aware that postage costs go up from Monday … Aust Post are keeping very quiet about the increases. I know the regular post small parcel under 500 grams postage goes from $6.60 to $6.95.

I might get myself a hot glue gun and give it a try attaching some mini neos to the lower section of the wall and see if they will attach to the blocks and grow up the wall.

Love that Canmea Galaxy, Sue and the mini neos in your pics.

My pics are 1 – neo Kahala Dawn, 2 – neo Hula Girl, looking good, 3 – neo Pemiento with 3 or 4 pups and 4 - Ae Bert Variegated.

Bye for now, Shirley

Shirley your Pimiento looks alot like your Kahala Dawn, nice and orange. Was it ever red? I hope my Leopard is the same as Nev’s Catlan’s Leopard, i love that one.
Sue-My Norman Bates is alot bigger than Hannibal Lecter but mine has no pups yet. sorry!
1. My Pimento Shirley 2. My Martin Jean, in alot of sun.

Shirley, your neo Beefsteak seems to have wider leaves than mine. As mine came from Leisa I am inclined to think it is rightly named.
It is larger than the pic shows. There are 2 small pups coming . If you would like one, I will put you down on a note so I dont forget.
Your garden must look really lovely with all the contrasting variegates among the others. I seem to be drawn to variegates in any plant.
I have an aechmea Bert here but it is not a pretty one. The upright vase shape seems a bit too closed . I an goung to remove the pup soon an dput in a basket. It may look nicer.
I like the dark stripey colors of Bert and the Orlandianas but they are not always attractive shapes.
Maybe I'm growing them wrongly..
Your Bert variegate is so lovely and a nice open plant.
I have a pup coming on one of the Orlandianas so will try that somewhere else too. The parent is growing in a pot outside at the moment and seems to like it there.
My pic of Bert is a bit dark because I just went out to take it and its foggy and not very light outside.
You can see how narrow the top is and he has been like that since I bought him. I thought maybe it would open but never has.
He has been a disappointment , but I suppose one must expect that when buying on Ebay etc..


A question again...
I have a space now in the fern house which has a green shadecloth roof. The area I have empty gets lots of sun and plenty of light all year. Should I try the broms there? They would be on a bench so in plenty of light , not down on the floor where there is a bit less light.
I have no more room for the vrieseas in the greenhouse so thought they might do well with more air movement .
I also have the old greenhouse which has lost all its plastic and only has shadecloth. Being shadecloth all round unlike the fern house which has a wall on the cold side, it will be cold in there during winter.
The begonias live in there and are all still doing well so I thought broms would look nice among them.
Which are the hardiest to cold , neos or vrieseas?
Of course, having a new space means I may buy a few more broms later...lol

Talking of buying broms, I had a blanchetiana which I had from a small pup. It was about 15" tall and as wide. I had it in the greenhouse for years but moved it out to the shadehouse a few weeks ago when moving broms around . I didnt miss it until I went looking for it again to get a pic the other day. I have searched the whole garden and cannot find it anywhere. Hubby thought I was mad running around looking for a plant
I can only assume that someone has come in when we were out, taken a liking to the largest brom and pinched it.
There are heaps of broms around where I had placed it but they are spikey, so whoever took it must have just grabbed the non spikey one. I am so annoyed as I did love that plant having had it from a baby.
Has anyone a Blanchetiana they can spare ? Please Dmail me with price etc..

Breeindy, your Martin is lovely. I have only just bought the one in my pic so will put it in plenty of sun.

Sorry for rambling on , but I always seem to have questions.


pi 1...my ugly aechmea Bert

pic 2...the darker aechmea Orlandiana with pup

pic 3...the lighter Orlandiana

Jean.

Hello all, I am now visiting with my Daughter, which is always quite amusing as her partner is a real character! At least there is no cleaning here for me, although my (tongue in cheek) son in law did show me where the duster is! Cheeky.
Shirley, I had forgotten the postage was going up, so when I do my next listing, it will have to go up to $9 to allow me enough to purchase a box. I just wish the buyers would buy multiple items so I didn't feel so bad about the postage. I know I would buy more than one if I could.
By the way, there is a xNeotanthus 'Firefoam' on Ebay, finishing today I think.
Good luck with gluing the broms on the wall. I'm sure you'll update us if it works? Also, I love your N. 'Pemiento' and look at that, it has pups! nudge, nudge, wink, wink.
N. 'Hula Girl' is looking nice. I have to say I have admired that on Ebay when I see it. Its nice to see one grown by someone other than the seller, because sometimes they photoshop them, and you never know if it will actually turn out the same as the gallery photo.
Bree, thanks for the info on Neo. 'Norman Bates'. I see them come up for sale from time to time and wonder if its worth having. I have an N. 'Skotaks Tiger' which seems to quench my thirst for the large tigery ones, and plenty of smaller tigery neos also, so I guess I can live without it.
Hasn't your Neo. 'Martin' got alot of colour? It goes to show that they don't have to be in so much shade as some keep them.
Jean, your Aechmea 'Bert' just looks like it has had alot of shade. They grow well on the sides of trees, and if you have a north facing tree trunk (one that doesn't shed its bark) you could tie it to there, especially in the next few months while the sun is weaker, as they can take almost full sun. That will give it a more squat, open shape, and a much lighter colour. Also, the A. orlandianas can be treated in the same way.
I think your lighter brighter shade house could be a good spot to colour up your Neos, and any other broms that have a bit of red in them. Also, some of the foliage Vrieseas get much better colour with more light. You might have to allow your broms a a bit more space for airflow if it is enclosed from the breeze, by not placing them so that their leaves are touching.
I THINK that Vrieseas would probably be more cold hardy than Neos, but I'm not 100% sure, because I am not familiar with your climate. You could probably try them in your shadehouse area, but put some other plants between them and the colder side for some protection. Also remember they don't like treated timber, so if you have any treated timber supports or beams, make sure you don't place them where any water will drip or splash from it, into the brom. A local vrieseas grower reckons that keeping the soil in your vriesea pots moist during the cool months, helps them to tolerate the cold, but I would be wary of keeping them too wet. Vrieseas are grown quite well in NZ, which seems to get fairly cool winters, so it might be worth a go, but maybe just try a couple this year, and not your most favourite or expensive ones?
Sorry to hear about your A. blanchettiana Jean. When I get home I will see if I have a reasonable size plant for posting. I know I have quite a few pups, but most are Waaaaaay too big to send.
Nev, I'm already missing you! I want to see what advice you would give Jean.
Anyway, photos for today are
photo one Is neo. 'Aurora' complete with webs. I have cut through the stolon to try and encourage more pups. nev is top of the list for this one.
Photo two is Neo. 'Pheasant', and again I cut rhough the stolon.
Photo three is Neo. 'Little Faith'
Photo four is Neo. 'Honolulu' hybrid (can't find info on this one, it came from leisa)
Photo five is Neo. 'Cougar'
Sue

Sue the fern house & shadehouse down the back are joined and although open to the weather with only shadecloth sides , the south side is a solid wall so no really cold wind. They will get rained on though.
My ferns love it so the broms should too . I put all my old mums down in the adjoining shadehouse and they are doing very well.
It the rain is really heavy for days, I can throw a piece of plastic over them.
The old broms in the top shadehouse have survived a whole year outside under the shadecloth roof without any other protection.

I have no trees here that dont lose bark so cannot hang poor old Bert up. I may just leave him and take the pup when it grows. The orlandianas seem to like where they are .
Thank you for the offer of a blanchetiana. I would be happy with a small one so I can grow it on as I did the other.
I still keep looking for the missing one as hubby said I must have just misplaced it but I had him help me look and it is definitely gone. I hope it dies on whoever took it .
I meant to say in the previous post that the blanchetiana was less spikey than the surrounding ones as I do remember it had little spikes.

I have been moving broms around this afternoon and now have some on the benches . The treated timber used in the shadehouse doesnt seem to be dripping on any broms but I will watch it.

Jean.

Hi everyone, we had a couple of unexpected downpours today, one minute the sun was shining, the next it was absolutely pouring. The first time it happened, I was just about to get my dry washing in from the clothes line. By the time I got it off the line, it was soaking wet and so was I. It pelted down a couple more times this afternoon.

Bree, I thought the same thing when I posted the pics of my neos Kahala Dawn and Pemiento, that they looked similar. Pemiento was bright red, perhaps the colour has faded because I fertilized it … its having lots of pups at the same time, I thought it might need some help.

I will get a parcel off to you tomorrow Bree, I will D-mail you as well.

Jean, I would love a pup from the real neo Beefsteak, though I think it’s an awful name for a lovely brom, thanks so much.

Jean, I think your broms would grow OK in the fern house but then I’m not familiar with the weather in SA. I know mine do well in the same type of set up but then it doesn’t get cold here. Best wait for Nev’s advice I think.

I think it is pathetic that some lowlife stole your lovely blanchetiana. You need a BIG dog, then they’d think twice about coming in and pinching your broms.

Sue, I always try to buy more than one item on eBay from the same seller to save a bit on postage but then they don’t always have two broms I fancy listed at the same time. And there have been times when I have bid on one finishing earlier to offset the postage and won it, then missed out on the one I really wanted and ended up with just my 2nd choice and have to pay full postage anyway.

Sue, one of my neo Pemiento pups has your name on it … shouldn’t be too long either. My neo Hula Girl is still a youngster but I can put you down for a pup when it happens if you like.

I will post your parcel tomorrow too Sue, I will D-mail you as well.

Nev, as Sue said, we miss you already !! Where is Trish ? Where is Ian ?
Where are Wendy and Jen ? What about Colleen and Karen … and Kristi ?
Mike has gone too !!

Hi to anyone else looking in,

My pics are 1 – Vr Daintree Forest x Speckles, 2 – neo Mandella, 3 – neo Manoa’s Child

Bye for now, Shirley

Yes get a great dane no one will come in our yard. hehe!

Hello everyone. Shirley I would love a dog but this place is not convenient to have one with old wire paddock fences and no yard for a dog to be in .
I am in south west Vic not SA, but our weather is similar to what is along the border.
Very cold winters and not as many really hot days in summer as the north of the state gets.
We do get frosts but rarely inside the garden as we are on top of a hill so the frost tends to settle in the valleys. The low temps do affect the plants sometimes though, and I will keep my best broms in the greenhouse.

I am still puzzled as to why anyone would come in and just take the one brom which would not have been the first they saw. Anyone would have to walk through the open the open shadehouse to get to any of the garden.
Its a mystery, but the plant is definitely not here anywhere.

I am like you in trying to get more than one brom to offset any postage.
I am very aware of postage costs as I have sold lots of my epis and iris over the years.
I am careful to only buy from those with reasonable postage and not some of the sellers who put too high a figure on postage .

Love your dog , Breeindy. He looks like a sweetie.

I will be waiting for the mail today to see if my latest broms arrive.
I moved a lot around yesterday and am trying to have the greenhouse mainly for vrieseas.
I think they will soon outgrow it though as some are quite large.

Better move as I have to go out

Jean.

Hello you two, seems like theres less and less of us each day! Too much going on with ailing family members. I will get on again as soon as I can, but hubby keeps interuping my train of thought, so now is not a good time. I guess, having been away from home for 10 days, he probably wants my attention. Sheesh! I probably won't be back tonight, but maybe tomorrow morning.
Sue

Hi all.'
I am still around and have seemed to have run out of puff, shortage of wind and energy but this is only at times. The Doctor cannot find anything wrong because for tests I usually have to fast. I do not understand that when there is a problem, then we wait 2 weeks to do tests. In my line of work when there is a problem, it can be identified immediately and then a solution can be found. Sh1t happens I guess.
The weekend just passed was wet with showers both days, I couldn't get much done.
Planted some more seed and looked around to find more pups to be removed
DG won't let me send any pics at the moment.
Have a good one
Ian

Pic 1 Neo Sun King

Hellooo out there,

It’s absolutely pouring here at the moment, overflowing the gutters and drowning out the sound of the TV.

Bree, love your great dane … maybe a little larger than I had in mind for Jean though.

Jean, sorry … it’s Colleen who is in SA. Just another senior’s moment. I hope your new broms arrived and they are everything you hoped for. Odd they should arrive on a Monday, generally sellers post on Mondays, or does it take a full week.

Sue, hope to see you back tomorrow. I know everyone is busy and some are caring for sick family members but as you say, there seems to be less and less of us posting regularly. Hope everyone who is absent is getting along OK.

Ian, it’s good to see you back, sorry to hear you have been crook. I know what you mean about doctors and tests etc. I agree that if you have a medical problem, waiting two weeks to perform a test is hardly going to identify the problem you had two weeks ago.

I like your neo Sun King, looks to be a very large brom … love the streaks on the undersides of the leaves.

Tonight’s pics … 1 – Ae Melanocrater, 2 – Canistrum Triangulare

Till tomorrow, Shirley

Hi everyone - Just to let you know I'm still here, but where have all the others gone? Everyone's on tender hooks here as we await the outcome of Thursday. I'll keep you all informed.

Until then, just a few file pic's to keep my place at DG reserved. Pic.1 is Neo. Fairy Tale, Pic.2 is Neo. Fire Wheel, Pic.3 Neo. 'Dunmore Ruby', Pic 4 is Neo. French's Cruenta and Pic.5 is Dr. Oeser 'Special Red'

All the best, Nev.